The subject of gatekeepers – editors, reviewers and other arbiters of literary taste – is on everyone’s mind as we seek a new order to replace the one that is ossifying before our eyes. (See Who Will Replace the Gatekeepers?“) One candidate has just materialized that deserves serious attention.

Two editorial veterans, Patti Thorn and Patricia Moosbrugger, have launched BlueInk Reviews, which their press release describes as “a website devoted exclusively to reviewing and highlighting self-published books.” Though a variety of initiatives have been promoted to validate self-published books, the founders of BlueInk are determined “to become the gold standard in reviews of self-published work.”

The unusual – some may even say radical – fee-based business model they have designed just may achieve their goal. But it will be not be unattended by controversy. “Funding at BlueInk Reviews,” states their press release,”comes from authors, who pay a fee to have their books reviewed. As with print publications, we manage that inherent tension between author and critic by strictly maintaining that firewall between the two parties.”

How will that work?

“Our reviewers will have no contact with the authors funding the reviews. In fact, our authors will never know which reviewers have been assigned to critique their books. Our critics – who come from the traditional publishing world and are well aware of traditional review ethics — will follow written guidelines instructing them to craft objective, honest reviews, noting both the positive and negative points of any book. Editors will oversee all reviews, with an eye toward insuring fairness and honesty.

“Authors pay in advance and will not be refunded if displeased with the reviewer’s assessment. They can, however, opt to remove their review from our website.”

A year or two ago we would have greeted this undertaking skeptically if not cynically. In an article about vanity publishing published in the fall of 2009 I wrote “I draw no distinction between self-publication, subsidized publication and vanity publication.” (See You Got That Right, Ecclesiastes!) But the self-publication industry has evolved so rapidly and dramatically that anyone belittling it as mere vanity will stir a hornets’ nest of righteous indignation. The process has not only become respectable but profitable – and, for some, lucrative.

So, the idea that a self-published author would pay a fee to have his or her book reviewed is no more derisory than paying an editor, a printer and a publicist to produce and release it. Ms. Thorn and Ms. Moosbrugger are not just business people but idealists who think of themselves as gatekeepers. BlueInk, they say, is “more than a simple source for reviews, BlueInk acts as the primary means for readers and industry professionals to find the ‘next generation’ books worth selling, stocking, purchasing and reading.”

For their full press release and contact information, click here.  And for a detailed statement of their business model, read Can a Fee-Based Review Be Credible?

It’s a sign of their commitment that their answer is – “Absolutely.”

Richard Curtis

Can a Fee-Based Review Be Credible?
Absolutely.

All review publications must find funding somewhere. Traditionally, print publications have been financed in large part by advertisements from the publishing industry, and there has always been an inherent tension between the needs of those advertisers and the goals of critical objectivity. The key to ensuring objectivity has been in maintaining a firewall between critics and advertisers.

Funding at BlueInk Reviews comes from authors, who pay a fee to have their books reviewed. As with print publications, we manage that inherent tension between author and critic by strictly maintaining that firewall between the two parties.

Our reviewers will have no contact with the authors funding the reviews. In fact, our authors will never know which reviewers have been assigned to critique their books. Our critics – who come from the traditional publishing world and are well aware of traditional review ethics — will follow written guidelines instructing them to craft objective, honest reviews, noting both the positive and negative points of any book. Editors will oversee all reviews, with an eye toward insuring fairness and honesty.

Authors pay in advance and will not be refunded if displeased with the reviewer’s assessment. They can, however, opt to remove their review from our website.

While this approach may be a new one, we see it as one solution to the fact that few, if any, mainstream publications have the resources or space to review self-published work, especially in this era of downsizing. In fact, we see a not-too-distant future where even traditionally published authors will seek our guaranteed, fee-based service rather than the uncertainties of a “free” review — which may never actually appear.

Yes, we are following a non-traditional funding model. In the digital world, it has become a necessity to find new ways of supporting editorial ventures. But at BlueInk, we work hard to insure that our reviews adhere to time-honored ethical standards and are worthy of our web audience’s trust and respect at all times.

Publishing Veterans Launch Website Devoted to Professional Reviews of Self-Published Books

NEW YORK, BookExpo America — An internationally known literary agent and an award-winning former book review editor announce the launch of BlueInk Reviews, a website devoted exclusively to reviewing and highlighting self-published books.

The move comes on the heels of industry reports that the number of books released from non-traditional channels doubled between 2007 and 2008. It nearly doubled again between 2008 and 2009. Furthermore, U.S. book sales fell 1.8% in 2009 to $23.9 billion, while e-book sales tripled to $313 million. Many of these e-books are self published.

“Independently published books are increasingly becoming an important part of the publishing scene,” said Managing Partner Patti Thorn. “With BlueInk, we aim to become the gold standard in reviews of self-published work.  We are committed to addressing the urgent needs of the self-publisher for credible critiques without compromising the values of the traditional publishing industry.”

Thorn was books editor at the Rocky Mountain news for 12 years, prior to the newspaper’s closing in 2009. She won many awards for her arts and entertainment criticism and accolades for her incisive column about books and the publishing industry. She joins Patricia Moosbrugger in this venture. Moosbrugger is a former subsidiary rights manager and literary agent who represents New York Times bestselling authors Kate Furnivall and Louise Penny and was formerly with the Stuart Krichevsky Literary Agency, where she worked with bestselling authors Sebastian Junger, Nathaniel Philbrick.and Steven Covey.

While fee-based, all BlueInk reviews are written by professionals whose bylines have appeared in major publications, such as The New York Times and Washington Post, or who have served as editors at well-respected publishing houses, including Penguin, Viking and Crown.

As BlueInk critics discover worthy reads, the best of these titles are then featured in high profile positions on the BlueInk web page and promoted to publishers, librarians, literary agents and booksellers. They are also further vetted by the BlueInk Board or other industry professionals to determine their merit for a BlueInk Best Book Award, our highest honor.

In this way, more than a simple source for reviews, BlueInk acts as the primary means for readers and industry professionals to find the “next generation” books worth selling, stocking, purchasing and reading.

BlueInk offers a host of other services as well, including: articles with self-publishing tips; places for independently published authors to tout their sales successes; lists of important writing resources; classifieds and other ads targeted to authors and more.

In short, BlueInk is a vibrant forum for authors, as well as the go-to source for red-hot reads in the self-publishing realm.

As the world of self-publishing continues its exponential growth, BlueInk Reviews would greatly appreciate it if you’d let your readers know about its arrival on the scene. Meanwhile, check us out at www.blueinkreviews.com!